How has the role of political parties in congressional elections changed over time? How did congressional incumbents help change this role? How did the 1994 election change the prevailing pattern...

How has the role of political parties in congressional elections changed over time? How did congressional incumbents help change this role? How did the 1994 election change the prevailing pattern of electoral competition?

I think that a strong case can be made suggesting that the 1994 Midterm Elections changed the prevailing pattern of electoral competition. In 1994, the Republicans ran hard on the party brand, using it to criticize and decry Democrats that were aligned with the failing condition of the Status Quo. Led by Newt Gingrich, the 1994 elections aggressively charged at the Democratic Status Quo: "Popular discontent with the state of the nation's economy fed into Republican attacks on the social and cultural aspects of American liberalism, the 'culture war." This became a defining element of the 1994 midterm election.

The Republican campaign in 1994 was rooted in both economic issues as well as a battle for political identity rooted in "culture." The Republicans' aggressive stance helped to construct a vision in which bipartisanship was viewed as collusion against national interests. It was an approach that demonized the political "other," casting the Democrats as the source of American discontent by suggesting that liberalism was a flawed and dangerous approach. Painting opponents as "too liberal" became a common theme in Republican campaigns in 1994.

Given the success of the 1994 Republican Revolution, this became a common theme in Congressional elections over time. The branding of the other party as being politically toxic and seeking to link candidates to such a condition became a part of the political dynamic of Congressional elections since 1994. This pattern was seen in both 2000 and 2010 with the rise of Conservative Republican and Tea Party elements. In both elections, there was a definite danger in being associated with the liberal or democratic party. In the most recent mid- term elections, branding a candidate with the weight of their political party became a tactic that both sides used. The Republicans had no problem associating Democratic candidates with the perceived failed policies President Obama. For example, Republican Senator Mitch McConnell made a very large issue of how his opponent could not give a direct answer regarding whether she voted for the President in the general election. On the other side of the coin, Democrats had little reticence in linking their opponents with the "Tea Party" agenda that sought to "limit women's rights." The idea of strongly linking a candidate for office with their political party, demonizing it and making it a wedge issue was a technique that defined the 1994 midterm elections and has been something that both parties have embraced ever since. It is in this light where the prevailing pattern of electoral competition was changed as a result of the 1994 Congressional elections.